


Brighter

by IwillStealYourPants



Category: Cyberpunk 2077 (Video Game)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Angst, Fluff and Smut, M/M, Slow Burn, more tags to come
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-02-12
Updated: 2021-02-14
Packaged: 2021-03-12 06:28:24
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 4,097
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29380662
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/IwillStealYourPants/pseuds/IwillStealYourPants
Summary: V has been struggling with his own existence ever since a bungled Arasaka heist cost him everything. Kerry Eurodyne has been struggling with his own existence for as long as he can remember. Fate decides to throw them together, changing their lives and Night City forever.
Relationships: Kerry Eurodyne/V
Comments: 7
Kudos: 73





	1. Brighter

**Author's Note:**

> Please be aware that tags will be added as the story progresses and ratings may change. 
> 
> No beta, any mistakes are my own.

_Have you ever been so far below_

_You could only see light using a telescope_

_Point it up to the sky and wonder why does hope_

_Feel so far, but look so close_

  
  


V dispatched the last of the Scavs with a twist to the neck and let the body fall to the floor. He glanced around the decrepit warehouse, straining his eyes and ears for any sign that someone might be lurking in the buildings many shadows, waiting for him to drop his guard so they could stick a blade through his ribs. 

After a few minutes of uninterrupted silence, V was satisfied that there was no one left alive to disturb him and he could set to work. Bodies were littering the space in various states of butchery, and V was looking for one in particular. He’d initially hoped to find his target alive but he’d already determined he was the only person in this building still breathing. Armed with a picture of a striking red-haired woman, V set to work examining each of the bodies, determinedly ignoring all of the wet, sticky patches he put his hands into. 

He found her in a tub of ice, or rather he found what was left of her. Scavs had harvested everything, and looking at her she’d been dead for a while, organs and cyberwear would already have been sold on. He hadn’t stood a chance of making it in time, was already too late when he got the call with the job. A fact he let wash over him, armouring himself in it. It wasn’t his fault this time, there wasn’t another death on his hands. 

**_It wasn’t his fault._ **

Repeated in his head like a mantra throughout the night. When he dropped the lifeless remains of someone’s wife, someone’s mother into the trunk of the car. When he called the fixer to confirm that the job was done but the target hadn’t made it. When his payment was confirmed. When the husband offered his gratitude for bringing his family closure. All moments that should have made him feel something, would have made him feel everything once upon a time, but that V was long gone. Dead. Killed by the same city that killed the red-haired woman. She wasn’t his to mourn, and her death wasn’t his fault. 

V ducked into the first bar he came across, heading to the bathroom to wash the blood off his hands when his phone pinged with a message. Regina Jones had a job for him and it was nearby. Wanted him to upload a daemon onto some minor corporations network, it sounded easy and paid well, V didn’t need more details than that. He briefly considered putting it off until tomorrow, but ultimately decided to just go and get it done. He could get shitfaced later, he surmised, checking his gear and heading out in the right direction.

-

Night City never slept, but it did change with the sun. Neon lights and drunken gonks giving way to street markets and Corpo businessmen selling their souls, just regular folks waking up to start their day. V sat by the water just watching people going about their business, wondering what their lives were like, imagining a world where he was one of them, how he might have been if things were different. His introspection was interrupted by his holo ringing, of course. Damn thing never stops.

“V, I have a job for you,” Pade’s face came into view, “this one requires a special combination of skills, discretion and quick thinking. I know you’re the man for the job.”

“Consider me intrigued Padre,” V chuckled, “what do you have for me?”

“Have you ever heard of a rocker named Kerry Eurodyne?”

V nodded and made a vague grunt of acknowledgement. V didn’t really listen to the radio or follow the screamsheets but he knew who Eurodyne was, he didn’t live in a cave. 

“Got a superfan of his,” Padre began, “his collection is missing something, something he just absolutely must have, and he’s willing to pay handsomely for it.”

“Don’t keep me in suspense Padre, what does he want?”

“Break into Eurodyne’s house and steal his pants.”

V stood there in silence waiting for Padre to laugh, to tell him he was joking and give him the real job deets. The man in question looked as serious as he always did. V didn’t quite manage to keep the disbelief out of his voice. 

“You can’t be fucking serious, no way in hell am I breaking into some celebrity mansion just to steal his clothes for some loser psychofan!” V had built up a reputation as a merc who would take more or less any job but this was a step too far, too crazy even for him.

“He’ll pay you 5000 eddies for them.”

“God damn it, send me the deets.”

-

Not for the first time in his life, V found himself questioning how he gets himself into these situations. Standing outside Kerry fucking Eurodyne’s mansion in the middle of the day, counting security bots. Of course, the guy would have fucking security bots - is that one wearing a hat? - patrolling his fucking house. V didn’t like the job, he didn’t like that it came from a nutcase and he sure as hell didn’t like security bots. 

V took some time to memorise their patrolling patterns, check for security cams, spraypaint a huge dick on the wall and count entrances, all while watching the windows of the house. He hadn’t seen any movement in the past hour, the guy was either asleep or out, either way, V could work with it. 

V chose a good spot in the outer wall to climb over, one that would give him plenty of hiding places immediately after he landed with a clear path to the door. Hopping the wall, he immediately concealed himself behind a collection of plants, waiting for his window of opportunity. He would only have about 10 seconds to get to the door before the next bot came around the corner so he would have to time it well. V scanned the door intending to hack it before he had to move, surprised to find it already unlocked. The guy probably thought the bots would be a stronger deterrence than a locked door, but V made a note to be cautious, expecting someone might be home. 

His window came and he sprinted to the door, opening it and sliding inside without issue. When no security rushed at him and no alarms went off, V relaxed a fraction. He took in the huge, open-plan space and his first thought was _why the fuck would someone with this much money live like this._ V wasn’t exactly a neat freak but holy shit this place was a dump. Every single surface was littered with empty booze bottles, ashtrays and garbage. V made his way through the space, avoiding stepping on the mattresses that were scattered around the floor. It looked like someone had hosted a party a week ago and no one had cleaned up since. This did not bode well for V being able to find these pants, he just hoped the closet was a little tidier than the rest of the house.

With no signs of anyone being home, V’s curiosity got the better of him and he started to wander around. V didn’t know much about Eurodyne other than bits of his music he’d heard and snippets of gossip, but he knew the man was a pretty big deal. Always in the screamsheets for one reason or another. People would pay fortunes to get this glimpse into his life, to peek behind the curtain of Night City’s most famous rockstar. 

The house was a disgusting festering mess, the guy obviously wasn’t one for being house proud, but the vinyl’s and guitars on the wall were impeccably cared for. It was clear what mattered to him. V inspected the items on a nearby table, some books, a photograph and a few rolls of eddies (nice of him to leave V a tip) before making his way over to the guitars for a closer look. 

That was when he heard it, running water coming from a nearby door. Someone was home and in the shower. Shit! V had already spent way too long wandering, he needed to find what he came for and get out, he’d been lucky so far that this guy apparently takes the longest showers in Night City.

V made his way up the stairs quickly and quietly, looking for a bedroom or a closet where he might find what he was looking for. He found the bed in the middle of the floor, but no dressers. He was probably looking for a room-sized walk-in closet he decided, trying the first door he came across and finding it locked. V shrugged and easily picked the lock, opening the door and finding himself in a closet bigger than his whole apartment. 

Being careful not to make too much noise or disturb the beer bottles that amazingly filled every surface in here too, V began rummaging through drawers and racks of clothes, Crazy McPsychofan didn’t just want any pants, they had to be a particular pair worn in some performance years ago. They looked pretty good on the guy V couldn’t deny that, consulting the picture once more, shame he wouldn’t get to wear them again. Confirming that he’d found the right pair, V grabbed them and turned to make his way out, making a stupid, rookie mistake in the process.

V tried and failed to catch the bottle he’d nudged as it fell, cursing himself as it smashed loudly against the hardwood floor at the same moment the door opened downstairs. 

V held his breath.

“Who the fuck is up there?”

Fuck! V quickly ran through his options in his head. He couldn’t go out of a window, he was too high up, he’d likely hurt himself and get caught by the bots. He couldn’t confront Eurodyne, what the fuck would he do? He wasn’t going to kill a celebrity and the guy had plenty of resources to come after V if he saw his face. He could hide, it was a stupid idea and he could just be cornering himself but it was the least terrible in a string of terrible options.

V tucked himself into a cabinet full of coats and jackets and closed the door on himself, listening to footsteps make their way up the stairs and in his direction.

“Who’s there? Just come out I’m not in the mood for this cat and mouse bullshit.”

V stayed quiet, not daring to move or even breathe too loudly, hoping the guy would hurry up and leave so he could make his escape.

“Fuck, am I losing my mind?”

The footsteps got louder, V shifted his weight in his hiding spot, freezing when he heard a creak, then a crack. Time stood still for a moment, just long enough for V to think oh shit before the door swung open and he came face to… gun with the one with a living rock god. 

“The fuck?”

“This isn’t what it looks like,” V choked out, lamely. Smooth, V, really smooth.

Kerry stared at him unbelievingly. “So you’re not hiding in my closet, holding my pants?”

V thought for a moment. “Okay, it kind of is what it looks like.”

“Fucking psychofans,” Kerry spat, “You’re breaking into my home now?”

That gun was still pointing at him and Eurodyne looked pissed, this was not good and de-escalating was not part of V’s skillset.

“Hang on that’s not… I’m not a psychofan okay?” 

“Again, you’re in my closet holding my pants.” Eurodyne leaned down and without moving the gun away from V’s face, snatched said pants from his hand. 

_He smells good_ , V’s traitorous brain supplied, finally waking up and taking note of the half-dressed state of the man in front of him. Not now, V, focus!

“I’m a merc, I was hired to do this okay? It’s nothing personal, believe me. I’m just trying to make some eddies.”

“Who?”

“Who what?” Had V missed something? “Can you stop pointing that thing at me please?”

“No, you broke into my house and you’re clearly armed, how stupid do you think I am? I mean who hired you?” Kerry still looked pissed, but less so now.

“Don’t have a name, came through a fixer.”

“Can you get me a name?”

“I shouldn’t, I have a pretty good rep for being discreet, merc-client confidentiality and all that”

“That isn’t a thing.” Okay, so Kerry wasn’t buying his shit.

“It’s a personal code of mine,” V admitted.

“What about when you meet the guy?”

“Not meeting, just gonna take the goods to the nearest drop zone.” For the 2nd time today, V didn’t like where this conversation was heading.

“Whatever they’re paying you, I’ll pay double if you find this guy for me.”

V thought for a moment, that was a very tempting offer.

“And you can take the pants, finish the job.” 

“Fuck… Fine. Why do you want to find this guy so bad?” V asked

“Had a guitar of mine stolen a few months back. Got a hunch this guy might have been behind it.” Kerry explained, “What’s your name?”

He thought about lying but decided against it. “You can call me V.”

“Well V, call when you have something for me. Now, and I mean this in the nicest way possible, get the fuck out of my house.”

  
  


_Will you wander with me to the edge_

_Take a breath, tell the world that we're not finished yet_

_Cast a net to the stars and see if we can get_

_Closer to the light at the end_


	2. I'll Sleep When I'm Dead

_ I feel like I'm exploding _

_ Going out of my head _

_ Gonna live while I'm alive _

_ I'll sleep when I'm dead _

V needed an excuse to meet the client in person, he considered spinning Padre a story but he knew the old man too well. He was too sharp, always knew what was going on in his turf, if V tried to lie he’d be caught out no doubt about it. If he was going to call with a problem it had better be a real one, and the only way to make that happen was to create one. If he was going to get anywhere near the client, he needed to shut down the dropbox system. V called in an anonymous tip to the NCPD, claiming there would be some prime XBD’s being moved via the dropboxes, snuff stuff, the real deal. Just as he expected, it wasn’t long before there were officers ‘covertly’ watching every box in the area, jumping on the chance to catch an XBD distributor in the act. 

This was exactly what he needed. His next call was to Padre, explaining that he wouldn’t be able to make the drop and other arrangements would have to be made. No, he couldn’t just hold on to a celebrity's stolen pants with the cops crawling around Heywood, either the client takes them or V dumps them.

Predictably the client was too paranoid to meet with V himself but he did send a proxy to collect his goods. The proxy was a pretty nondescript looking woman and the handover went off without a hitch. V watched her walk about 20ft away before he started to follow, taking care not to get too close. She stuck to fairly crowded streets making it easier for V to blend in but also keeping him on his toes in case he lost sight of her. 

He followed the proxy on foot for about 10 minutes to an apartment building and watched her meet a man at the door, handing over the stolen goods. A quick scan revealed the man’s identity as Gaston Slayton, no gang affiliation or cyberwear of note. As soon as Slayton disappeared into the elevator, the people lingering in the lobby immediately started talking shit about him. Turns out he was not very popular among his neighbours, leaving his music blasting all day and night from the penthouse, even when he went out. V had a name and an address, really that’s all Kerry wanted from him, but he decided to linger and see if he could get into the guys home. 

V waited in the lobby to see if Slayton would leave, hoping the guy had a job or a social life of some kind that he had to get to. It didn’t take long, less than an hour and Slayton was heading out of the door. V didn’t hesitate, he was in and out of the guy’s apartment within 20 minutes, walking through the lobby confidently, head held high, a stolen guitar and two pairs of pants in his arms. No one bothered to look at him twice, no one usually did. Keeping your head down and your nose out of other people’s business was a valuable survival skill in Night City.

He made his way to the nearest alleyway, getting himself out of sight in case Slayton came back before he called Kerry on the holo.

“Hey, got some info for you on your pant stealing superfan. Got a little surprise for you too, but I can’t give it to you over the phone.” V made sure Kerry wouldn’t be able to see what he was holding. 

“Colour me intrigued, come on over.”

V called for Delamain Junior to come and pick him up. He had a regular car, but his driving was… problematic at the best of times, and the guitar wouldn’t fit on his bike. He liked the baby AI anyway, he found his stuttering endearing and it was nice to have someone to make conversation with during long drives. 

His arrival at Eurodyne’s villa goes a little differently this time. He uses the intercom, is granted entrance and walks right past the security bots. If he does the latter quickly and suspiciously with no small amount of unease, well, who could blame him? Those things were freaky, especially the one with the hat. He had his eye on that one.

He lets himself in, greeting Kerry in the nearest of the many living rooms. Seriously, this villa had the weirdest fucking layout V had ever seen. Kerry started to talk when he saw V, then stopped when he spotted what he’s carrying. 

“Is that my guitar?” He demands.

“Such amazing manners,” V chuckled sarcastically, handing the guitar over. “Yeah, it’s yours. Found it in the client’s house, among other things.” 

V thrusts the handful of clothes at Kerry, who begrudgingly stopped caressing his guitar and examined them. He recognised his own pants stolen by V just that afternoon and… 

“Are these Johnny Silverhands fucking pants?” He asked incredulously, eyebrows comically rising to his hairline. 

“What Silverhand did with his pants is none of my business, but yes according to the label those are his.”

Kerry cracked up, “Oh man, you are worth every penny, V!” Kerry claps him on the shoulder, “You know I was always stealing Johnny’s pants, drove ‘im crazy,” He laughed, “50 years on and I’m still doing it.”

V stood awkwardly as Kerry went quiet, probably lost in old memories. He gave the guy a moment before clearing his throat and breaking the silence.

“Speaking of things you’re paying me for, got some real info for you too.” V started, grabbing Kerry’s attention again. “Client’s name is Gaston Slayton, lives in a penthouse apartment in Heywood and he is obsessed with you.”

“Now when you say obsessed…”

“The guy’s home is a giant shrine to you and Samurai and he wants to wear your face.”

“Sorry, he wants to what?!” 

“I found emails on his computer, wanted a plastic surgeon to make him look exactly like you, got refused though. Good move getting your face copyrighted.”

“That is extremely fucking disturbing.”

“Oh, you think that’s disturbing!” V starts with a cheeky smirk, “wait until you see what else I found!” 

“I’m not sure I want to.”

“Just wait,” V chuckled. He’d found a very interesting datashard among Slayton’s possessions, and he started to read it out loud. “It's over for you, Silverhand! - said the Japanese agent with an evil smile and then he fired at the silver-armed legend. No - Johnny thought to himself. It can't end this way. There are still corps I have to destroy. I have so much left to do... I have to... I have to tell Kerry that I love him…”

“What? What is that?! Show me!” Kerry made to grab for V who simply danced away from the grabby hands and continued reading.

“Yes, it was when he was spitting up blood on the floor and flexing his sweaty biceps and abs in pain that the raven-haired rockerboy realized he loved Kerry... even if he was terrible at making breakfast.” 

“I am not that bad at making breakfast!” Kerry denied, but he couldn’t keep a straight face and wound up on the couch, clutching his sides and trying in vain to control his laughter by the time V was done.

“I haven’t heard shit that bad since the 2030s” Kerry wheezed, finally getting his breathing under control. V graced him with a rare smile, pleased to have elicited such a reaction, though he wasn’t sure why. 

Kerry disappeared for a moment, returning holding two opened beers and handing one to V who took it gratefully. Kerry flopped down on the couch “You really went above and beyond today kid, I knew you had balls but looks like you’ve got the skills to back them up too.”

“Thanks,” V started taking a seat too, stifling a yawn, “But it wasn’t a tough job. Everything went smoothly.” 

They sat chatting for a while, Kerry told V about the guitar he’d stolen back for him, announcing that he’d hired a fixer to do that very task and insisting V be paid for it. V explained how he breaks into places so easily and even showed off a little of his quickhacking skills, manipulating different appliances around the room without getting up off the couch until he started to visibly tire. 

Kerry looked at his guest, really looked at him. V was a good looking guy but he clearly wasn’t looking after himself properly. Dark shadows under his eyes, skin lacking that youthful glow, clothes were just a little too loose. Now he was sitting on Kerry’s couch looking like he might collapse if he tried to stand up. It was none of Kerry’s business but he couldn’t stop himself from asking. 

“You okay, kid? Look like you haven’t slept in a week.” 

“It’s only been a couple of days,” V admitted without meaning to. His filter stops working when he’s tired. V flinched a little under Kerry’s gaze, “I’ve had a lot going on, but this was my last job of the night, I’ll rest up when I get home,” V promised, finishing his beer and standing to go.

Kerry sighed, “Wait.” V waited. “You look like you’re about to drop,” Kerry began “It’s already late, why don’t you crash here?”

V hesitated.

“Come on, got a nice comfy sofa right here and ‘ganic coffee.”

V wanted to refuse, he really did. He knew he couldn’t avoid sleeping forever but he’d never been a fan of sleeping in strange places and he didn’t know Kerry well enough to trust him while he was vulnerable, he just wanted to get back to his own place but Kerry was probably right. He could barely keep his eyes open, even though Junior could handle the driving V couldn’t guarantee he wouldn’t just collapse in the elevator on the way up to his apartment. 

“Yeah, alright. Thanks.” 

Kerry patted him on the shoulder “You need anything?”

“Nah, I’m good I think.” V was already making himself comfortable.

“Alright, get some sleep huh kid? Got something I wanna run by you in the morning.”

“Yeah… Hey Kerry? I’m sorry.” V’s speech was becoming sluggish, halfway to being asleep.

“For what?” As far as Kerry knew V had nothing to be sorry for. 

“I painted a dick on your wall and stole some eddies off your table,” V mumbled before closing his eyes.

Kerry just chuckled, “Goodnight, V.”

  
  
  


_ Till I'm six feet under _

_ And they lay my bones to rest _

_ Gonna live while I'm alive _

_ I'll sleep when I'm dead _

**Author's Note:**

> It's been a long time since I've written or posted anything. Comments are love :)


End file.
